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Congratulations! You’ve decided to clean up your diet to buoy energy, banish fatigue, possibly lose a few pounds and achieve greater general health. But if your goal is simply to “eat better,” chances are you’ll fall short. Broad objectives are difficult to maintain because there is no metric of success—does “eating better” mean choosing a turkey burger over a beef burger or does it mean eating eggs for breakfast?

“I find that committing to one to two small changes doesn't feel as painful for people—but it can create big results,” says Kate Geagan, RD, author of Go Green Get Lean, who adds that making extremely detailed goals sets you up for healthy food victory. “The goal ‘eat more veggies’ is too vague.” Instead, your goal should identify what foods you’ll swap the junk with, for example, instead of eating chips, eat one cup of edamame with sea salt.

Here, we pair important health goals with tangible food and beverage recipe ideas to help you truly “eat better” for the long term.